Student Conclave has come and gone, and luckily here at AOTA we got tons of great photos of the event. Did I mention that we had nearly 600 students attend? Yes, 600! It was most definitely a successful event.

Check out the album below for the photos we took (keep checking back because we have a few more to upload!) and be sure to visit the 2009 Student Conclave gallery on OT Connections to upload your own photographs. I can't wait to see them!

2009 Student Conclave

BTW, if you see yourself or your friend's in any of the pictures, let us know by commenting here or on the photo on Picasa!

We're officially in Baltimore and it's a beautiful day for conclaving! Everything is set up, registration is open, students are trickling in to the exhibit space (and picking up their freebies! woo!), and I'm taking the time to come and let you know that Conclave is officially on!

If you are here in Baltimore, then come say hi to me at the AOTA table (and/or wandering around with the camera around my neck). I just wanted to let you know that we will be live tweeting on location, so be sure to check out twitter.com/aotainc and you can stay up to date on what's going on here at Conclave (especially for those of you moping around because you couldn't make it...)

Happy Friday! And Happy Conclave!

(P.S. we will be uploading pictures, so be sure to come back and look for them)

And one last thing, if you are at Conclave, and looking for some place to eat and hang out tonight, don't forget the Baltimore Hot Spots post!

Student Conclave starts tomorrow. You read that right, my friends. Tomorrow! And I, for one, am pretty darn excited about it. I’ve been blogging about Student Conclave since July and during that time–I don’t want to toot my own horn or anything–but I’ve taken the metaphor of cars and driving to what I think are previously unheard of places. 

If you’re as tired of reading those metaphors as I am of writing them, well then let’s just call a truce and I only will give you a short last-minute recap in case that you’re 

• a) a student 
• b) who has not made up his/her mind yet whether you're going tomorrow 
• c) lives close enough that they realistically could get up tomorrow, get in a car, and be in Baltimore by 4 p.m. 

Is that you? Good! Let’s go:

Reason number 1 you should attend Conclave TOMORROW: Because it’s an overall amazing student-focused event that is completely geared to your needs and wants and will help you be in gear for your career. And I’ve compared this to riding a road bike; using a GPS navigation system; and jump starting your car.

Number 2: You will have the opportunity to perfect your resume, your interviewing skills, and meet real-live job recruiters. I’ve compared this to getting your driver’s license; Mario Kart; and my uncle’s famous phrase, “one day you will have to get a real job.”

Number 3: Advocacy! If there were ever a time to really get started with advocacy, it is now! I’ve compared advocacy to having car insurance and being aware of blind spots.

Number 4: For all the fun stuff that’s going to be happening at conclave, like networking, dancing, and meeting new students. I’ve compared this to stopping at rest stops, taking road trips, driving in the HOV lane, and dancing and singing in your car.

Number 5: Clinical Sessions! This is the perfect time to learn more about life as a clinician, a researcher, and learn about specialty areas. I’ve compared this to test driving a new car, parking on campus, and army versus civilian vehicles. 

Number 6: Get tips on how to pass the NBCOT Exam, which I compared to using an EZ pass on toll roads and bridges. 

Whew!

Did I convince you? If so, look for me tomorrow, I will be at registration and wandering around with a camera… Yippee!

As fun as I have on road trips, I’ll be honest, there is a certain point on drives longer than 6-8 hours where we all just get exhausted. It’s usually a little before or after midpoint. The first hour or so, the giddiness of the trip consumes your attention and conversation with fellow passengers. Then at about hour 2 there tends to be a break in conversation and either you turn on some music or listen to the audio book you so smartly packed in your bag. At some point during the trip, you will stop for a snack/gas/potty break. Right before midpoint, you suddenly start thinking in fractions—we’ve driven 1/3 of the distance already (as if this is an accomplishment).

And then comes the lull. You realize that there is still 45 minutes until your next fractional achievement (2/3 seems so far away), you realize that you’ve listened to this song three times already, or you just run out of topics to talk about.

On our family road trips back during my childhood, my mom was always good at warding off the lull. It’s like she knew that in less than a minute a simultaneous whine would emerge from the lips of all three of her children if she didn’t rectify the situation immediately, so she’d suggest a game. And suddenly an hour had passed, you had completely missed the 2/3 mark (darn!) and maybe—just maybe—dad decided that we’d pull over and let us take a brief break.

With Student Conclave literally days away we’re in the final stretch. The lull passed us and now we’re simply counting down mere hours until the big event (48 and counting, yee!).

But it’s not too late! If you haven’t registered you can still register on-site in Baltimore. If you still haven’t decided whether you’re attending, call up your friends and classmates and see if anyone is going and if you can squeeze into their car. If you don’t know of anyone going, or all the cars are filled to maximum capacity, gather some friends and get on the road!

I’ll be at registration and wandering around snapping photos on Friday, so I will see you there! Right? Right!

I don’t know what it is about driving by myself, but I always find it the opportune time to test out my vocal cords and figure out, once again, why I never would have made it on American Idol. Despite my lack of talent, I never have to think twice about belting out my favorite tunes as loudly as possible without shame. If the opportunity arises, a little dance might be thrown into the mix, but safety always comes first, of course.

It’s interesting how things keep being added to the “what not to do while driving” list:
1)    Don’t drink and drive
2)    Don’t text and drive
3)    Don’t watch DVDs and drive
4)    Don’t dance and drive

While dancing and driving will most definitely make your insurance agent cringe, dancing at Conclave should be A-OK to all the agents out there.

This Saturday night (can you believe Conclave is this week!?) the Students-Think-They-Can-Dance-a-thon is from 7-10 pm and will allow students to not only have the perfect venue for dancing the night away, but it will also be a group dance contest. Yes. A contest. No joking.

Dancing contests are all the rage on television these days—you know you watch them—and if you’re like me, you’ve been itching to have a dance off of your own. Groups can sign up to participate in the contest at the door by 7:30 pm Saturday night.

But even if a dance contest is not your cup of tea, there will also be a DJ, snacks, a cash bar, dancing (obviously), and the whole watching-your-peers-dance-their-booties-off.

The AOTPAC night/Students-Think-They-Can-Dance-a-thon is a fun way to end your Student Conclave experience. More information will be available at registration, so don’t hesitate to ask!

Oh, and if you’re writing up your “to-pack list,” be sure to include your dancing shoes.

We’re officially one week away from the 2009 Student Conclave! In an earlier post, I wrote about how participating with AOTA advocacy is like having car insurance for your future career, and urged you to attend the Conclave Capitol Hill Day on Friday morning (which, 150 students are interested in attending, and that’s very exciting!).

Sometimes—especially if you drive every day—the process of driving a car gets to be pretty banal and we may find ourselves just going through the motions. Obviously, this is very dangerous, but I’ve found that the more often I drive, the more careless (or maybe fearless?) I get.

One thing that I’m always worried about is forgetting to check my blind spot before switching lanes. It’s strange to me that still, after making automobiles for 100 years, we haven’t completely eliminated the blind spot, meaning that just checking your rear view and side mirror is simply not enough to be sure you’re in the clear.

Blind spots are tricky because you do have to take your eyes off the road in front of you to check the spot, which means you are momentarily flailing your 4,000 pounds of metal down the highway without even watching.

I think in many ways, professional advocacy is akin to checking your blind spots. While you definitely can drive for miles and miles without ever looking, and you can tempt fate, perhaps get lucky, and actually be in the clear every time you switch lanes, but one day it’s almost inevitable that the luck will run out.

I’m sure a lot of occupational therapy practitioners go through their day at work, complete their CE, and go home, without ever paying attention to the blind spots like federal legislation, reimbursement problems, or other professions infringing on your scope of practice, but that too is tempting fate.

So you definitely will want to attend the Stand Up, Speak Up: Advocate for Occupational Therapy session on Saturday, November 21. In this session, you will learn about how to advocate for your clients, your profession, and yourself!

You still have a week to plan out your road trip to Baltimore for next week’s Conclave (if you haven’t already done so), and don’t worry, you can still register on-site in Baltimore!

I can’t believe Student Conclave is next week! If you didn’t get a chance to be one of the more than 500 students to register online, you can still attend Conclave and register on-site in Baltimore.

Recently while on vacation, my husband and I rented a car and when we were asked if we wanted to upgrade the vehicle gratis we said sure, why not. Then we walked outside of the rental office and saw a huge Mercury Grand Marquis sitting in the parking lot. Basically it’s a car that is also a boat and a tank. It’s huge. And when it was my turn to drive I noticed that I was having trouble staying within the lines on off ramps (Mini Coopers handle curves a little bit better).

I told my husband that if we were playing Mario Kart, I’d be losing some serious points for not staying in the lines, which had me thinking about the fun times of being a kid and playing Mario Kart on Super Nintendo and having to dodge those slippery banana peels, flying mushrooms, and staying within the lines so as to not fall off the course completely like on the rainbow course. Years of playing Mario Kart prepared me for the moment when I had to drive a Mercury Grand Marquis. It was much like driving Donkey Kong's car, and I did really well after only a few minutes of getting used to navigating what basically is an aircraft carrier.

And no, this is not a post about Wii-hab, instead I wanted to use this Mario Kart Grand Marquis metaphor to encourage you to take advantage of the mock interview sessions on Friday, November 20 at Conclave. Hear me out. A mock interview is pretty much like playing a video game. You get all the benefits of actually practicing your interviewing skills, without the headaches, sweaty palms, and nervous chatter of what could be the real deal. You can try out things that might work, you can see what things most definitely don’t work, and most importantly you can get the experience and confidence you need to conquer your first real job interview.

So, if you’re one of the 500+ students already registered, you can sign up to reserve a spot during the Mock Interview and Resume Critique session (Friday Nov. 20 from 5-6:30). The session is first come, first serve, so you will need to act quickly. Send your name, school, whether you are an OT or OTA student, and e-mail address to studentconclave @ aota.org.

I'm taking a little break from Student Conclave posting, to show you something really exciting that AOTA launched today!

Today is a big day here at AOTA Headquarters because it's the official launch day of OT Practice Online. You may have read about the new interactive addition to the print version of OT Practice in the 1-Minute Update or in the news section of OT Practice.

Now you can finally see it for yourself and experience this dynamic way of viewing/reading/sharing OT Practice online! Some of the new features are live links within text, the ability to bookmark individual articles, write notes about articles, see related content on AOTA.org or OT Connections in an easy-to-use sidebar, email an article to a friend, and so much more. Go try it out right now - www.otpractice.org/currentissue

I spent a good hour this morning playing with the new features, and I'm going to share with you some of my favorites!

First, I love the fact that I can quickly see the entire issue of OT Practice in small thumbnails, which I can click and be taken immediately to the article.

Second, I am loving the clickable links in the text. There have been so many times that I see a URL in a print magazine and think, "boy, I should go see that Web site" and then I immediately forget about it. This way I can read the article, see the link, click it, and BAM! I'm at the Web site. Woo!

Finally, it's so great to flip through the pages quickly and effortlessly, almost like I have the print version sitting right in front of me.

Ok, so go try out the new OT Practice Online right now, then come back here and let me know what you think about it in the comments section. What are your favorite features?

I don’t know what the parking situation is at your university, but at Louisiana State University (my alma mater, Geaux Tigers, Beat Bama!—sorry I had to...) parking on campus is a nightmare. First off you pay an ungodly amount for a parking permit, then you learn that the permit only allows you to park in certain designated lots, situated strategically at the very far edges of campus, ensuring you will get at least a 15 minute walk in before class. 

While this is handy for getting in the feds daily recommended 30 minutes of activity, it’s no fun when you’re running late. For an exam. You’re stressed. There’s no parking spots. And you forgot your blue book. Doh.

And as you sprint to your classroom, papers flying out your bag, sweat dripping from your brow, your hair getting even more disheveled than it already was, you see a professor driving leisurely and calmly on the campus road next to you, and he pulls out his badge, swipes it, and a gate opens up allowing him to park right next to his office building. 

I was green with envy of those faculty parking privileges. How easy their lives must be. And then they get out of their car, go into their buildings, and immediately get to start interesting work on research in their field, coming up with innovative theories or filling in the gaps of previous researchers. Honestly, this is more attractive to me than the parking permit. 

Researchers and higher education faculty are crucial to any profession, because they not only train the incoming future professionals but also break ground by creating and testing theories, studying the norms of the profession and then challenging them. Occupational therapy is no different—in fact researchers in your profession are creating evidence to ensure that practice is effective in helping clients. 

So if you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be a researcher or a professor (or have that coveted faculty parking permit), you will want to attend one of the sessions on Friday, November 20 after the keynote address, “So You Think You Want to Be a Researcher?” or “We Need You in Higher Education.”

We now have more details about all the sessions and events at Student Conclave here. 

Have you registered yet? There are only one day left to get the early bird discount, so register today. And be sure to book a hotel room while you’re at it.  

I don’t know if this has ever happened to you, but I have fallen in the trap of planning a really fun and affordable road trip—while using an online travel site to book an inexpensive hotel—only to show up at said hotel to see that the place is actually a dump and looks nothing like the photos on the Web site. It’s so disappointing too, because the whole idea of the road trip is to save some dough but not to sacrifice cleanliness or sanity.

So I am here to report that the Student Conclave official hotel, Hilton Baltimore, is one amazing property. I recently attended a meeting at the Hilton and not only is the hotel brand new, but it stands towering over Camden Yards, the home of the Baltimore Orioles baseball team, with amazing views of the baseball stadium and downtown Baltimore.

Everything in the hotel is shiny and new, the staff at the hotel are friendly and helpful, and the location of the hotel is a perfect spot because it puts you smack dab in the middle of all the great things to see and do in Baltimore. Basically, you shouldn’t miss out on staying at this hotel!

In case you didn’t know, AOTA worked out a special deal for our students and Student Conclave attendees for rooms at the Hilton Baltimore. BUT, that deal runs out this Friday, November 6! Some of the rooms we blocked for our students can fit up to four adults, so split the cost with your friends and book a room today. Here is a ton of information about the hotel and the discount.

Also, if you haven’t registered yet, remember to register today to take advantage of the early registration discount!

I can’t wait to see you in Baltimore and see what you think of this hotel!

It’s probably happened to you before. You get in your car; put the key in the ignition, turn it, and…nothing happens. And when a random, but kind, stranger pulls up their fully functional car and battery beside you to give your dead car a jump, you remember in your head to always help out fellow motorists in the same situation in the future.

It’s funny how jump starting a car works. Sometimes your battery just needs a little juice, and then it’s fine the next time you start the car. Other times, your battery is simply telling you, “replace me already!” Either way, it is extremely convenient to be able to get it jumped and working to get you where you need to be (whether that’s home or the auto store!).

I remember there were times when in school where I’d be overcome by ennui and would find myself having to exert a lot of energy to finish up projects, attend classes, and study. It would have been nice to have a jolt back then—and not just with Red Bull—to remind me that in a few months (or maybe semesters) I will graduate and be embarking on an exciting and new career.

So what about you? Are you in a slump with schoolwork or fieldwork? Are you looking for a jump start to help you get a little more juice to make it to graduation and be prepared for your future career?

Let the 2009 Student Conclave give your career a jump start! The Student Conclave is so much better than Red Bull and the boost you will get from networking, clinical sessions, tips on passing the NBCOT exam, resume reviews, and advocacy is just what you need right now when the days are getting shorter and the term final grade is starting to be used more regularly. 

Be sure to register for Student Conclave today to take advantage of the Early Bird Discount!

Here at AOTA Headquarters we're looking out for our students. Not only are we offering you an exciting and beneficial event created completely for students with the focus of helping you get in gear for your future career, we also know that you love to save some money.

With that in mind, we've decided to extend the Early Bird registration discount for a few more days. So if you haven't done so already, click here and register and take advantage of the discount. You have until November 6, but why wait?

And while you're at it, get in touch with your friends and fellow classmates and encourage them to register too. There is limited space, so don't wait until the last minute!

Can't wait to see you in Baltimore in less than a month!

After my 6 years of university life (don’t worry, I got two degrees…) I have to say one of the best things about college is the road trip. Sometimes they are rather impromptu—sitting around late Thursday night and deciding with some friends, “hey let’s go to the away football game this weekend even though we don’t have tickets!” Other times we plan them out meticulously and the excitement that builds up as the trip gets closer makes doing homework, studying for tests, and attending lectures a breeze.

Either way, stuffing a bunch of young adults in a car that’s packed to the brim with bags, snacks, and road games is something every college student should experience. Then, once you arrive at your destination, the memories you make and the goofy pictures you take will last a long time in your mind, on your Facebook page, and in your photo albums.

So why not make the 2009 Student Conclave a road trip? Grab some of your friends, pick a reliable enough car to make it to Baltimore, book a room at the hotel, make long lists of things to pack, buy a bunch of snacks, plan out some stops to make on the way, and have the time of your life.

While I’ve gone over in excruciating detail the reasons you should attend Student Conclave, and all the exciting things we have to offer in my previous posts, you should know that the city of Baltimore is quite the happening place too. So if you do want to make it a road trip, check out this post from guest blogger, Molly, and her tips of the best things you can do while you’re in Baltimore. 

Have you registered for the Student Conclave yet? Did you know that the Early Bird Registration was extended to this Tuesday, October 27. So register today!!

Guest blogger, Molly, knows Baltimore better than anyone else at AOTA Headquarters, so I asked her to give us a run down on the best things students can do while they are in Baltimore for the 2009 Student Conclave.

Here are her tips and recommendations: (and feel free to comment with your own Baltimore hot spots!)

Fells Point: It’s one of Baltimore’s most well-known neighborhoods, and is right on the water, so there are cool views and much to see. Fells has oodles of places to eat and drink, and cool boutiques for the shoppers in the bunch. A couple of good places to check out: Horse You Came In On Saloon; Max’s on Broadway; and, yes, I know it will be November, and probably cold, but that is not really a good reason why you can’t check out Mr. Yogato, a frozen yogurt shop, also in Fells. May I just say it’s delicious? I may, and I will. Mr. Yogato  = deliciousness in a cup.

Federal Hill: Fed Hill is probably the closest neighborhood to the Hilton Baltimore and Student Conclave, and is another haven for food and drink. Up and down Cross Street and Light Street are bars and restaurants that will fit whatever you’re looking for. Mother’s is good for those sports enthusiasts (particularly any Ravens fans); if you like pie, check out Dangerously Delicious – they have pies out the wazoo. Sweet pies, savory pies, pie, pie, pie!

Little Italy: Probably my favorite neighborhood in Baltimore. So of course I have to share! It’s a foodie’s paradise, with lots of little delis and pastry shops, old Italian men playing bocce ball (AWESOME), and restaurant-wise, check out Chiapparelli’s. (I lurv their manicotti.) For those with a sweet tooth, or who simply thing dessert is their raison d’etre, do NOT miss Vaccaro’s, which is also in Little Italy, and has cases of gelato, pizzelle, tiramisu, and other such delectable Italian desserts and holy cow, excuse me, I just drooled thinking about it. In a word: Yum.

Some things to note about Baltimore: If something is available topped with Old Bay, EAT IT! Old Bay, a delicious spice you can find on everything from tater tots to crabs to pretzels and chips to…well, whatever you can dream up, is synonymous with Baltimore, and if you’ve never tried it, you really shouldn’t leave town until you do.

Also, water taxis. The parts of the city you would most likely be visiting curve around the Inner Harbor and other watery spots, and instead of hoping in a land taxi (always an option, of course) you could also partake of one of Baltimore’s well-known water taxis to get you where you want to go. Lots of different landings where the taxi will drop you off, great for exploring the city.

And: Poe! If you’re an Edgar Allen Poe fan, then Baltimore is an awesome place for you to be. You can visit the house and the grave (ooo…creepy!)…maybe recite The Raven, maybe have some absinthe…you know, like Eddie would do.

Finally: Inner Harbor. Now, I’m not the biggest fan of the Inner Harbor, because, well, it’s touristy and can be very pricey, but the Baltimore Aquarium is there, and that’s pretty nifty (though a bit expensive), and so is Howl at the Moon, which is a terrific sing-a-long piano bar.

Believe me when I say that these are just a few, tiny, miniscule ideas of places to check out around Baltimore. The tip of the ice berg. Were I to list everything, the blog would go on for days, and besides, you’ll only be in Baltimore for a few days! If none of what I’ve written suits your fancy, then the best place I can direct you is Baltimore Metromix. The site has oodles of information on hot places to go and what events are happening over the weekend. Also, since I know you all are college kids and probably low on cash, this site has a good list of things to do – FOR FREE.  (Woo!) Check it out, and have a great time in Charm City!

My husband and I take the train in the morning to work. He takes the train all the way in to Union Station in downtown Washington, D.C. and one morning he called and said there were secret service men all over Union Station and huge black SUVs parked outside. I told him it was probably our Vice President Joe Biden taking the train from his home state, Delaware, into the District. And later, while my husband was walking down Massachusetts Avenue to his office, he saw long lines of police motorcades and black SUVs drive past him and when he turned to watch, he swears he saw Biden sitting in the back of one of the SUVs.

There’s a lot of “to do” when a president or vice president moves about town—secret service, police motorcades, street closures, etc. The detailed planning that goes into these operations is immaculate but sometimes can cause headaches to other motorists.

The AOTA President doesn’t travel with secret service men or presidential motorcades, but it definitely isn’t every day that you have the opportunity to meet and chat with your president. At Student Conclave, you will not only have the opportunity to hear AOTA President Penny Moyers Cleveland deliver the keynote address, but you will also have the chance to meet her and talk to her at lunch and throughout the Conclave.

President Penny Moyers Cleveland will also be presenting a session entitled “A Commitment to Leadership” where she and two other AOTA leaders will share their wisdom and stories about leadership and how you can be a part of the next generation of leaders in your profession.

As an added bonus, watch this video to hear your personal presidential invite to Student Conclave.

Are you ready to meet your AOTA President?

Have you registered for Student Conclave yet? You know there’s less than a week left to get the Early Bird special! So register today!